9,800 Shares in Wingstop Inc. $WING Purchased by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wingstop Inc. (NASDAQ:WING) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,800 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,699,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in Wingstop by 76.9% during the 4th quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 138 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Wingstop by 75.7% in the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 188 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in Wingstop in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Wingstop by 121.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 217 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wingstop during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WING has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Wingstop from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $220.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson lowered their price target on Wingstop from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Wingstop from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Wingstop from $255.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $173.00 target price on Wingstop in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $241.81.

Wingstop Stock Down 1.4%

NASDAQ WING opened at $112.24 on Thursday. Wingstop Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.44 and a 52 week high of $342.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.66, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $140.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $167.97.

Wingstop (NASDAQ:WING) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The restaurant operator reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $185.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.25 million. Wingstop had a net margin of 16.15% and a negative return on equity of 16.31%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Wingstop Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Wingstop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Wingstop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Wingstop’s dividend payout ratio is 31.35%.

About Wingstop

Wingstop Inc (NASDAQ: WING) is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in chicken wings and related menu items. Founded in 1994 in Garland, Texas, the company has built its brand around bold, chef-inspired wing flavors and a streamlined service model that caters to dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering orders.

The company’s core offerings include both bone-in and boneless chicken wings tossed in a variety of proprietary rubs and sauces, such as Original Hot, Lemon Pepper, and Mango Habanero.